Who has to account
A California trustee must account at least once a year, at the termination of the trust and when there is a change of trustee, to each beneficiary to whom income or principal is required or authorized to be distributed (Prob. Code §16062). There are exceptions, for example while the trust is revocable and for beneficiaries who waive the account in writing (§16064). Personal representatives of estates, and conservators and guardians, account to the court under the same general rules in §§1060-1064, subject to their own statutes and rules.
The summary of account
California's distinctive feature is the charges and credits summary in Prob. Code §1061. The fiduciary is "charged" with everything that came into their hands and "credited" with everything that went out or remains on hand:
| Charges | Credits |
|---|---|
| Property on hand at the beginning of the period (or the inventory and appraisal value, for a first account) | Disbursements |
| Additional property received | Losses on sales or other dispositions |
| Receipts, including income | Distributions |
| Gains on sales or other dispositions | Property on hand at the close of the period |
Total charges must equal total credits. If they don't, something is missing, doubled or mis-categorized. Property is carried at its carry value (the inventory value, or the cost of later acquisitions), not at today's market value; gains and losses on sale are measured against carry value.
The supporting schedules
Each summary line is supported by a schedule (§1062). In practice the schedules cover receipts, gains and losses on sales, disbursements, distributions, and property on hand at the beginning and end, with dates, payees or sources and amounts. Where the instrument or law requires income and principal to be kept separately, the schedules show that split. Section 1063 lists additional information that must accompany the account where it applies, such as liabilities and changes in the form of assets.
Receipts and disbursements are usually listed by category with subtotals, or chronologically for simpler accounts. Each line should tie to a statement or other record, because beneficiaries and the court can ask to see it.
Trustee accounts: required notices
A trustee's account under §16063 must include, in addition to the financial statements, the trustee's compensation for the period, the agents hired by the trustee with their relationship and compensation, and two notices:
- a statement that the beneficiary may petition the court under §17200 to review the account and the trustee's acts; and
- a statement that a claim against the trustee for breach of trust may not be made after three years from receipt of the account (§16460), when the account discloses the facts giving rise to the claim.
These notices matter: the limitations period in §16460 depends on an account that adequately discloses the relevant facts.
Conservatorships and guardianships
Accounts filed by conservators and guardians must use the Judicial Council's standard account forms (GC-400 and GC-405 series) and follow Cal. Rules of Court, rule 7.575. The financial content is the same charges-and-credits logic, but the court form controls the layout. Summafolio produces the schedules and totals to carry onto those forms. Guardianships of minors aren't supported.
Common problems
- Transfers counted twice. Moving money from the brokerage account to the checking account is neither a receipt nor a disbursement.
- Carry value drift. A sale's gain must be measured against the inventory or acquisition value, not the statement's cost basis, which may differ after a step-up at death.
- Missing months. A single missing statement breaks the chain between opening and closing balances.
- Fees without authority. Trustee compensation and reimbursements to the trustee draw scrutiny; document the authority for each.
How Summafolio handles it
The California format renders the §1061 summary with each line referenced to its schedule, separate income and principal columns where they apply, and the trustee notices on trust accounts. Before export, every account is rebuilt from its statements and must match each closing balance. See the sample California trust account.